An Interview with Kara Jacobson

Kara lives in rural Minnesota with her husband, son, two fish, and two male cats. She was once an avid traveler, venturing to Egypt, Peru, and the Yucatan Peninsula, but now can usually be found outside on her patio with a cup of coffee and a notebook. She is the author of The Intra-Earth Chronicles and Beneath Storm Mountain.

Learn more at karalynejacobson.com.

How did it feel when you first saw your book cover? Or when you first held your book in your hands?

Awe. Excitement. Joy. It’s exhilarating to see characters that you have created come to life on a cover!

There’s a tremendous feeling of accomplishment when you first hold your new book! You know how much work and how much of your energy and soul went into creating it. Nothing compares.

Who/what made you want to write? Was there a particular person, or particular writers/works/art forms that influenced you?

My fifth-grade teacher, Mr. Eveland, told me that I was a writer. Up until then, it had never occurred to me that it was something I could do. The idea must have stuck, because twenty-five years later, that’s what I started doing.

I’ve always loved movies, and the love of books came later for me. I grew up with Nancy Drew Mysteries, Sweet Valley High, and Choose Your Own Adventure stories, which probably gives away my age. One of the first fantasy books that deeply impacted me was Stranger in a Strange Land. Stephen King was also a staple at my house, growing up.

When I first saw the Harry Potter movies, I fell in love with middle grade!

What other professions have you worked in? What’s something about you that your readers wouldn’t know?

I work as a Hospital Pharmacy Technician in my day job, and I love my work family!

In my first stint with writing, I attempted to write movie screenplays. This turned out to be extremely hard. I would enter screenwriting contests and place in the top 100, but nothing greater. A common criticism was that my screenplays read more like a novel, so now I write fast-paced books.

The Intra-Earth Chronicles; Book I: The Two Sisters was a nominee in The New Media Film Festival (2021).

What new writing projects are you currently working on? Or, other projects that are not writing?

I plan on writing more Intra-Earth Chronicles books, but I haven’t begun yet.

I am currently working on a young-adult book that takes place at a local haunted hospital that recently was torn down. My husband helped with maintenance at the hospital, and there were reported occurrences of the time clock punching out employees though not plugged in, the elevators going up and down on their own, voices and feet running on the abandoned upper floors, and repeated sightings of a pregnant woman in a hospital gown, though the obstetrics unit had long been closed. The story that I am writing follows the life of the mysterious pregnant woman.

Another project that I am working on is a middle-grade novel about an eleven-year-old girl whose life had just begun to get good: the boy of her dreams suddenly noticed that she was alive, and she started to get invites to the popular kids’ parties, and then, boom, she’s diagnosed with cancer.

I recently had a health crisis, leukemia, and I wondered how my younger self would deal with the same crisis. The kind of leukemia that I had was a common childhood cancer, so hopefully this book will help other young people who are battling the disease. And of course, this story will have a happy ending!

How was working with Atmosphere Press? What would you tell other writers who want to publish?

It’s a phenomenal feeling to have a whole team of talented individuals invested in making your book a success! I only have a couple of beta readers, so Atmosphere’s input and guidance were invaluable in the creation of the Intra-Earth Chronicles.

Everyone I worked with was extremely knowledgeable and helpful! Bryce helped the story shine, while BE, Chris, and Cassandra aided with the proofing and interior design. Alex orchestrated the editing, while Ronaldo oversaw the cover art. There were also many others behind the scenes working diligently; I felt supported all along the way. I would tell other writers who want to publish to go for it! Atmosphere Press is a great choice!

Are you a writer, too? Submit your manuscript to Atmosphere Press.